Essay On Dr Jekyll

[Pablo Tatts]

Asa token of my appreciation for all the help you gave me for the duration in which I was forced to study English Literature at school, I'm attaching this essay for you to possibly use in a future video. Michael

I knew myself, at the first breath of this new life, to be more wicked, tenfold more wicked, sold a slave to my original evil; and the thought, in that moment, braced and delighted me like wine. I stretched out my hands, exulting in the freshness of these sensations; and in the act, I was suddenly aware that I had lost in stature.

\u201CI knew myself, at the first breath of this new life, to be more wicked, tenfold more wicked, sold a slave to my original evil; and the thought, in that moment, braced and delighted me like wine. I stretched out my hands, exulting in the freshness of these sensations; and in the act, I was suddenly aware that I had lost in stature.

There was no mirror, at that date, in my room; that which stands beside me as I write, was brought there later on and for the very purpose of these transformations. The night however, was far gone into the morning\u2014the morning, black as it was, was nearly ripe for the conception of the day\u2014the inmates of my house were locked in the most rigorous hours of slumber; and I determined, flushed as I was with hope and triumph, to venture in my new shape as far as to my bedroom. I crossed the yard, wherein the constellations looked down upon me, I could have thought, with wonder, the first creature of that sort that their unsleeping vigilance had yet disclosed to them; I stole through the corridors, a stranger in my own house; and coming to my room, I saw for the first time the appearance of Edward Hyde.

I must here speak by theory alone, saying not that which I know, but that which I suppose to be most probable. The evil side of my nature, to which I had now transferred the stamping efficacy, was less robust and less developed than the good which I had just deposed. Again, in the course of my life, which had been, after all, nine tenths a life of effort, virtue and control, it had been much less exercised and much less exhausted. And hence, as I think, it came about that Edward Hyde was so much smaller, slighter and younger than Henry Jekyll. Even as good shone upon the countenance of the one, evil was written broadly and plainly on the face of the other. Evil besides (which I must still believe to be the lethal side of man) had left on that body an imprint of deformity and decay. And yet when I looked upon that ugly idol in the glass, I was conscious of no repugnance, rather of a leap of welcome. This, too, was myself. It seemed natural and human. In my eyes it bore a livelier image of the spirit, it seemed more express and single, than the imperfect and divided countenance I had been hitherto accustomed to call mine. And in so far I was doubtless right. I have observed that when I wore the semblance of Edward Hyde, none could come near to me at first without a visible misgiving of the flesh. This, as I take it, was because all human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil.\u201D

Stevenson presents good and evil in \u2018Jekyll and Hyde\u2019 as a natural component of man that should be understood, rather than something that should hold society inmate to its Christian afflictions. In the extract, Dr Jekyll is uncovering to the reader these ideas and finally, after nine chapters of repression, he lets go and unleashes his liberated self. Stevenson aims to use Jekyll\u2019s findings about good and evil to remind his readership of innate duality and the importance of exploring man\u2019s more sinister side.

Good and evil in the extract, and the novella as a whole, is presented as a natural component of man. In the extract, Stevenson aims to emphasise to a reader that, though Dr Jekyll is transforming, what he becomes is not only as human, but also as monstrous as the former. He does this by having Jekyll describe the feeling of being Hyde as \u201Cnatural and human\u201D. Hyde\u2019s actions throughout the novella are murderous, violent, and unpredictable, so for Stevenson to describe him in ways as human and relatable indicates Stevenson\u2019s change of perspective as he previously presents evil as sinister but begins to depict it as innate, exhibiting a view that is more sympathetic towards Hyde.

Each of the adjectives connotes normality about Hyde and reinforces Stevenson\u2019s aims to be in the direction of normalising the \u201Cevil\u201D which the character personifies throughout the novella. Dr Jekyll also admits that \u201Cthis too, was myself\u201D, cementing an impression of unexpected humanity about Hyde through the comma in this phrase that amplifies its formality and sobriety; Jekyll has manifested all of his evil into the creation of another being but feels nonetheless human because of it.

Stevenson continues this impression throughout the rest of the chapter: \u201Cman is not truly one, but two\u201D, presenting each side of duality to just be \u201Cone\u201D, rendering them synonymous in worth to each other. Stevenson is depicting the duality of man to be inherently balanced, calling recognition upon the monster that lies within, deviating from other gothic writers at the time who wrote about external, inhuman monsters, such as Mary Shelley when she wrote \u2018Frankenstein\u2019 earlier in the 19th century. Stevenson is developing a gothic trope in a way that no other writers during his time dared to, adding thought-provoking memorability to the message he is sending. He ultimately pushes forward the idea that good and evil should be seen as, in an ideal society, essential and normal parts of humanity.

Good and evil is presented as a topic that should be explored further. This is shown in the extract when Dr Jekyll says he \u201Cmust here speak by theory alone, saying not that which [he knows], but that which [he supposes] to be most probable\u201D. Jekyll is giving a long and hollow explanation of his anagnorisis*, reminding the reader that even Jekyll is unsure of any exact details behind good and evil.

During 1921-2 (the now) Lady Jekyll wrote unsigned essays for The Times with titles such as 'Tray Food' and 'Sunday Supper', 'For the Two Fat' and 'For the Too Thin', all of which are contained in Kitchen Essays. Recipes are interspersed with her delightful comments, for example an excellent and very simple recipe for Caraway Tea Bread in 'Tea-Time and Some Cakes' is prefaced: "The true spiritual home of the teapot is surely in a softly-lighted room between a deep armchair and a sofa, two cups only, awaiting their fragrant infusion, whilst the clock points nearer to six than five, and a wood fire flickers sympathetically on the hearth."

The author of Kitchen Essays (1922) was sister-in-law to the great Gertrude Jekyll, whose biographer wrote that if she 'was an artist-gardener, then Agnes was an artist-housekeeper.' Agnes was a famous hostess (the guests at her first dinner party included Browning, Ruskin and Burne-Jones) and her home, Munstead House, 'was the apogee of opulent comfort and order without grandeur, smelling of pot-pourri, furniture polish and wood smoke'.

"An enchanting period piece and, in its own quirky intelligent way, a culinary gem" is how Nigella Lawson described Kitchen Essays; India Knight called it 'beautifully written, sparkling, witty and knowing, an absolute delight to read', while the BBC Food Magazine praised 'this exquisitely reprinted period piece'.

The three Bront sisters and Jane Austen also made patchwork quilts, but we are ending with Susan Glaspell who, if she didn't quilt herself, certainly knew how patchworks were made. Trifles (1916) is a play which Glaspell later adapted into... Read More

Heat Lighting, written in 1931, is set in the American Midwest in the summer of 1930, nine months after the Wall Street Crash, ten years into Prohibition. The War casts a long shadow. At... Read More

This is IvyPanda's free database of academic paper samples. It contains thousands of paper examples on a wide variety of topics, all donated by helpful students. You can use them for inspiration, an insight into a particular topic, a handy source of reference, or even just as a template of a certain type of paper. The database is updated daily, so anyone can easily find a relevant essay example.

The teacher in me worries about starting to think about academic writing from a deficit position. I always begin writing workshops with professionals by asking them how many of them have had to write submissions for funding, or make a case for something to happen or not happen. If they know how to do this, then they know how to make an argument. And if they have to write case notes, or report in writing on expenditure against a budget then they already know the importance of getting details down accurately and writing succintly. I could go on, but the point is that most people arrive at doctoral research not only with several years of academic success (writing essays) behind them but, if they are already in the workforce, then they also probably have some experience with some of the major writing genres they are going to need to write a thesis or a paper.

3a8082e126